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WORld orchestra - BIO

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Grzech Piotrowski’s World Orchestra reaches to the roots of the music. To the world music, the ancient improvisation from the times when the sheet music was nonexistent. When the fathers passed their fathers’ knowledge on to their sons, continuing musical traditions of many generations. Despite civilization development the music is the only universal language on the planet. It’s the language of soul that we all know subconsciously. Its beauty is able to move each and everyone, irrespectively of age, religion, continent or wealth. The instruments used by the World Orchestra as such are unique. The musicians play the long forgotten instruments. Sound of the symphonic orchestra gets ornamented with: Armenian duduk, Bulgarian kaval, Moldavian tsymbaly, kurai played by Bashkir people, lyre, harp, Finnish kantele, zither, and Tunisian oud or udu. Vocal techniques used by e.g. Ruth Wilhelmine Meyer, Bulgarian Voices Angelite, Sainkho Namtchylak or Sinikka Langeland reach for vocal traditions used by the ancient singers from Bulgaria (open-throat singing), Lapland (joik), Tuva, Mongolia, Japan, Norway (throat singing). The world scale curiosity are instruments of a Norwegian drummer, Terje Isungset, who is famous for playing instruments made of ice (ice-music). IN the World Orchestra Isungset plays the hand-made percussion instruments, made of wood and stones. In the orchestra even a popular saxophone (played by Grzech Piotrowski) is a rarely seen “twisted” soprano from 1918. World Orchestra is much more than just a modernly arranged Project, using rare instruments: it is a musical journey, full of space, subtle emotions and magic; it’s a consistent cooperation of rich personalities and pulsating temperaments, a dialogue between tradition and modernity; between musical cultures of the world and the XXI century commonness, energy and contemplation. The biggest asset of the project is the undisputable virtuosity of the artists, and a joy of playing music that is still alive despite many years of stage experience.

Few words from Grzech Piotrowski about World Orchestra :

” The idea was very brave and came to live in high-school times. It was a dream of gathering virtuosos, sound alchemists, representing different cultures and playing rare instruments on one stage; of going back to the music of the world, ancient improvisation from the times when there was no sheet music, when fathers used to pass their knowledge on to their sons. It was a dream of improvising together with singers from Tuva, Mongolia, Scandinavia, with those living behind the Polar Circle or in Bulgaria; of colliding roots of the music of the world with jazz, impressionism and film music; of finally discovering today masters of such instruments as kaval, duduk, kurai, Moldavian dulcimer, harp or Finish cantle. Preparation of the World Orchestra took me 18 years. In that time I played concerts all over the world, met outstanding artists from distant countries, my knowledge was growing rich, I collected new contacts and skills in order to be able to rise to this challenge. I established several music bands, such as Alchemik, Oxen, Emotronica, Archipelago, Dekonstrukcja Jazzu and Freedom Nation, which helped me find my own music path. I worked as a music producer (concerts for TVP2, TVP2, CD’S for EMI,SONY,UNIVERSAL,Polish Radio, TV Shows for TVN) and publisher (Alchemic Records). I am also quite a popular sideman and I participated in more than hundred artistic and commercial projects. Celebrations of the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald in 2010 and the concert played in the Olsztyn Cathedral gave me an impulse to establish the World Orchestra. All the contacts collected throughout the years came in handy. In the summer 2010, 6 months of work on music, concerts and logistics fructified in the first tour in Poland and Russia. In 2011 the World Orchestra played for 5000 people during the “Cracow jazz night” festival and performed in Ljubljana in Slovenia on the occasion of the Polish EU presidency. However, the biggest challenge was participation of the World Orchestra in the Solidarity ofArts 2011 festival in Gdansk. The project culminated gathering on one stage 80 artists from Poland, Norway, Russia, Bulgaria, Bashkiria, Holland, Siberia and Moldova. The World Orchestra evades frames and standards. It is a music journey full of space, subtle emotions and magic. Its music is described by critics and listeners as “the language of a soul that we all subconsciously know, the beauty of which is able to move everyone irrespectively of age, religion, continent or wealth.”